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THE DESTINY 



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AND THE 



MEANS FOR ITS ATTAINMENT; 



BEING 



TWO INTRODUCTORY LECTURES 



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BY THOMAS INGLES, Jr. 



CINCINNATI : 

GAZETTE OFFICE. — WRIGHT, FISHER, & CO., PRINTERS. 

18 49. 






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TO THE READER. 



The first of the two following Lectures was delivered by the author 
in this city, over three years since, and by request, was repeated before 
the "Cincinnati Union of Associationists, " of which he was at the 
time of its delivery, and is now, a member. The other has never 
appeared before the public. As they have been lying idle for some 
time, being of no special benefit to himself, or others, he has concluded 
to publish them, believing they contain facts and arguments, which, if 
generally known and appreciated, would prove interesting and important 
to mankind. 

Should his Lectures tend, in any degree, to subserve the cause of 
Human Progress, he will feel amply repaid for the time and labor spent 
in their composition. T. I. 

Cincinnati, Nov. 3rd, 1849. 



i 



J3CTURE 



Ladies and Gentlemen: 

The subject that will occupy our attention on the present 
occasion, and to which your earnest, and unbiased attention is respect- 
fully invited, is entitled—-" The Destiny of the Human Race on Earth, 
and the Means for the attainment of that Destiny " — a subject fraught 
with the deepest interest, and one which, as your speaker will endeavor 
hereafter to show, has an intimate, and practical relation, with the best 
interests of society — of all classes of society — rich and poor, high and 
low, bond and free. 

It will be immediately perceived, by the audience, that the subject is 
naturally divided into two grand parts: first, The Destiny of the Human 
Race on Earth; and second, The Means for the attainment of that 
Destiny. We shall, therefore, observe this natural indication, and in 
the first place, will speak of the Destiny of the Race on Earth; and in 
the second place, (which latter portion will form the greater part of our 
subsequent discourses,) treat as to the Means for the attainment of that 
end, which are to be found in a science — the science of Association ; (as 
it is termed by its advocates, both because it is expressive of its charac- 
ter and intentions, and to distinguish it from other systems,) or, as it 
may very appropriately be termed — the science of Social Re-Organiza- 
tion, the principles of which are professed to have been discovered by 
Charles Foueier, and which are embodied in the writings of that 
profound and original genius. 

The first question that naturally suggests itself to the mind in the 
consideration of this question, is : What is the Destiny, the final Des- 
tiny, of the Race ? Or rather, we will inquire : What is the Destiny of 
Man? viewed as an individual member of the Race; for having 
determined his Destiny, then will we know that of the Race, as its 
Destiny is but an aggregate of the Destinies of each individual member 



6 

of which it is composed. What, then, is the Destiny of Man ; or, in 
other words, why was he organized ? For what purpose ? There must 
have been some object in his creation. He could not have been created 
for nothing ; for there gleam forth from his whole constitution, physical, 
intellectual, and moral, as with a living light, the palpable and unmis- 
takable evidences of wisdom, which prove, in the most conclusive 
manner, that their great Original, who as a necessary consequence must 
be an Architect of infinite wisdom, could not, in the very nature of 
things, do anything, however apparently insignificant, much less perform 
an act so exalted as the creation of an intelligent being, without having 
some definite object in view. Why, then, I repeat the question, was 
he organized? 

In order to ascertain the end, or aim of any thing, animate or inani- 
mate, it is necessary first for us to become acquainted with its nature, 
and the tendency of its impulses. In the language of Fourier, "Attrac- 
tions are proportional to Destinies:" that is, if certain attractions, or 
permanent impulses are to be found in a being, which impel it to a 
certain object, or objects, they (these impulses) are sure indicators of 
the end for which it was created ; lead it, if implicitly followed, with 
an unerring aim to its true goal; and reveal the Will of the Creator 
in its formation. 

Now, we ask, are any such impulses discoverable in Man? They 
certainly are. It is not our purpose, at present, minutely to analyze, 
and classify them. We, will, however, mention some of them. Among 
the number are Ambition, which seeks for excellence and distinction; 
Love, which attracts persons of sympathetic tastes among the opposite 
sexes, to each other, and like chemical affinity, binds them together in 
the hymenial relation; Familism, (a technical, term,) or the feelings 
existing between the different members of a family — parents and chil- 
dren, brothers and sisters: and Friendship, or the affection that unites 
friends, causing them often, when largely developed, to make great 
sacrifices for each other. 

In addition to these four impulses, moving powers, or passions, (these 
words are used synonimously,) which are termed the Affective Passions, 
there are five others called Sensuous Passions, or the passions of the 
senses. They are : the passion of Seeing, which desires beautiful forms 
and colors, is fond of sculpture and painting, and scenic beauty; Hear- 
ing, which is pleased with harmony and melody of sound; Smelling, 



which delights in fragrance ; Tasting, which seeks for rich flavors : and 
Touch, or Feeling, which is gratified by the contact of objects that are 
cool, warm, soft, smooth, elastic, or otherwise agreeable. 

There are also three other passions, not mentioned, which, in connec- 
tion with the nine just named, are denominated in Social Science, the 
radical, or fundamental passions, from which arise all the varying 
shades of human character. 

Now all these passions, and in fact all of the passions to be found in 
human nature, prompt their possessor to their gratification, and when 
the object, or objects of their wishes are realized, produce sensations of 
pleasure, greater or less intense as the case may be. And the sum total 
of all these separate pleasures, derivable from the gratification of man's 
various impulses, or passions, may be denominated by the common name 
of — Happiness. 

Happiness, therefore, is the Destiny of Man. This is the end for 
which he was specially organized. It was intended that Man should be 
happy — intensely happy. All of his impulses tend towards it, as to a 
common focus. 

In saying that Happiness is the Destiny of Man, we do not mean, as 
our words might seem to imply, thas this is the actual Destiny of Man ; 
or in other words, that he attains to it at the present time. Innumer- 
able facts prove the contrary; for although there is some enjoyment, 
yet it is far from being universal, and the position of the great mass 
of mankind is one of poverty and of intense suffering. We mean, 
in saying that Happiness is the Destiny of Man, that he was organized 
for it, and that, although it is impossible for him to obtain it at present, 
on account of the ignorance resulting from the comparative youthful- 
ness of society, (which we believe to be yet in its infancy,) and the 
want of a scientific organization of its elements; yet he will be able, in 
a future time, by the combined exertions of past, present and future 
generations, to obtain that Happiness which he has so long sighed for, 
and for which he has so long vainly sought, the elements of which are 
in, and around him, in his own mysterious and wonderful nature, and 
in the beautiful and ever-varying productions of material nature. 

While on this part of the subject, we think proper to answer a ques- 
tion that has occupied and puzzled many minds, and upon which many 
partial, and vague notions have been promulgated. It is : In what is 
Happiness to be obtained? — what constitutes it? Many different, and 



8 

conflicting answers have been given to this question. Some have said 
that Happiness consists in virtue, some in religion, (meaning exclusive 
devotion to the Supreme Being,) some in contentment, some in a clear 
conscience, some in pleasure, and the gratification of the senses, some 
in the gratification of this passion, others of that — some in one thing, 
and some in another. Now let us see if we, by the light of the forego- 
ing analysis, can solve the problem — a problem that has been viewed as 
a dark enigma. 

In what, then, does Happiness consist? We answer, in the equili- 
brated, and harmonious development, and consequent enjoyment, of all 
the physical, intellectual, and moral faculties of man. In this is to be 
found complete Happiness. That which is to be obtained by the gratifi- 
cation of only one, or a portion of man's impulses, passions, or moving 
powers, is merely partial Happiness. Complete Happiness, (i. e. perfect 
in all its parts, and varied in intensity,) can only be obtained by the 
gratification of all man's passions. That enjoyment which springs from 
merely one, or a portion of them, cannot, consistently, be called Happi- 
ness; for when we say a person is happy, we imply, or should imply if 
we use the word in its strictness, that his Happiness is complete ; which 
would not be the case, if, while he experienced the enjoyment of one or 
more of his passions, he were deprived of the means of gratifying one or 
more of his other passions, or were forced, by the necessities of a false 
society, to restrain some of his legitimate impulses. True and complete 
Happiness, therefore, I repeat it, cannot be obtained, otherwise than in 
the compound gratification of all the faculties of human nature. I agree 
with you, therefore, that the happy man is a rarity, in fact that he can- 
not, be found; for no man, as will be shown in the sequel, has an 
opportunity, in the present false state of things, of gratifying, with 
equilibrium, all of his tendencies. But I do affirm, with a feeling of 
absolute certainty, that the happy man will be found, in future time. I 
firmly believe that, in process of time, all men, w*ith perhaps a few 
exceptions, will be completely happy, at least so far as their natures are 
susceptible of being rendered so, and that peace and good- will will per- 
vade all minds, from the "rivers even to the ends of the earth." I 
say this, because I see, as with the clearness of the noon-day sun, the 
means of accomplishing this much-to-be desired result. In the language 
of St. Paul, "I speak that which I know." 

Ciceko's idea of the happy man, (and this has been, and is now, the 



9 

opinion of many others,) was one who, amidst the misfortunes and suf- 
ferings of life, is capable of preserving his equanimity — and one, also, 
who, to use his own expression, is devoid of all "perturbations" — not 
only those which are wicked ; such as cupidity, envy, anger, revenge, 
etc., but those also of an opposite nature, and which are generally 
deemed worthy : such as pity, joy, ambition, enthusiasm of every kind. 
His idea was, that the mind of the sage should be free from all emotion, 
perfectly unruffled, and calm as the tranquil lake, when the voice of the 
angry storm is hushed to silence, and the gentle zephyr has sunk to 
repose in the bosom of exhausted nature. His philosophy, however, 
which is founded on a fact, but which, as we will endeavor hereafter to 
show, overlooks other facts, is false. When I say false, I mean in the 
abstract. His theory, or at least a great portion of it, in its application 
to the existing state of things, is just, wise, and in fact absolutely neces- 
sary ; but in its adaptation to a true order, it is, at least in our estima- 
tion, perfectly fallacious. We will endeavor, hereafter, to show the 
origin of his and other stoical notions, (which are quite prevalent in 
society, not only being embodied in theory, but exemplified in practice,) 
and will attempt to show that they had their origin from, and are spe- 
cially applicable to, the present false system of society. 

Having now, as we think, by the light of a brief analysis, succeeded 
in showing the object for which we were created — viz : to be happy, we 
will widen the subject a little, and will endeavor to show, in the first 
place, that Happiness is attainable on earth ; and in the second place, we 
will endeavor to show the chief reason why mankind have always been, 
and are now, foiled in their attempts for its realization. And we now 
ask the earnest attention of the audience, as the trains of thought which 
we are about to pursue are subtil, and cannot be grasped without a con- 
tinuous effort of attention. 

First, — Happiness is attainable on earth. The first and strongest 
evidence we have in support of our position, is to be found in the fact 
that the elements of Happiness are within us, (in the impulses of our 
nature which when gratified are the sources of pleasure,) and that the 
Creator, who is a being of infinite wisdom, must, in the creation of 
man's various impulses, in order to be consistent with himself, have 
reserved some means for their gratification. To deny this, would be to 
impeach the wisdom of the Creator, by implying, either that he acted 
by mere caprice, without having any definite object in view ; or that 
2 



10 

seeking for those means by which the cravings of the very nature which 
He himself had made, might he satisfied, he knew not how to attain 
them. 

It would also he a virtual denial of his beiitvolcnce. Would a God of 
infinite good create a being, even a brute, much less an intelligent being, 
formed in "His own image," and plant desires within him — earnest 
longings after Happiness — without also giving him the means of gratify- 
ing them, and merely for the purpose of torturing and mocking him, by 
proving the utter futility of all his efforts, and by taunting him with 
pleasures which he never could enjoy ? Does this accord with our idea 
of his goodness? Would it not, in fact, be the height of cruelty? 
Could any one but a tyrant act so ? Would an earthly, much less a 
Heavenly Father, treat his children in this manner ? 

" What man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will give him 
a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye, then, 
being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much 
more shall your Father which is in Heaven, give good things to them that 
ask him!" The above language, from the 7th chapter, and 9th, 10th and 
11th verses of Matthew, shows in a clear and beautiful manner, the 
solicitude of the Creator for the happiness of his creatures. "If he 
ask a fish, will he give him a serpent ? " If man crave light, will Gtod 
give him darkness ? If he desire to feed his intellectual appetite with 
the varied and seasoned beauties of nature, are there not means in 
reserve by which he will be enabled to do so ? Does man desire 
harmony of sound, delight in the beauties of sculpture and painting, in 
basking in the refulgent beams of the "King of Day," or perambu- 
lating the green, shady bowers, made vocal with the melody of Nature's 
own minstrels; seek with rapture the pleasures of love and of affection, 
and of a varied social intercourse ; the exaltation of ambition ; does his 
soul crave knowledge, and long for immortality: in a word, has he 
any legitimate craving, that the Creator will not gratify? No! No! ! 
This cannot be ! 

Not only is it rational to infer that Man was destined to be happy on 
earth, because the elements of Happiness are in his nature, and because 
the Creator, in order to be consistent with himself, must have reserved 
some means by which he (man) would be enabled to gratify his various 
tendencies; but we have another, and equally strong evidence for the 
conviction, in the fact that the objects of man's solicitude are within 



11 

his reach ; he is endowed with a physical constitution capable of 
obtaining them; and that it is only necessary for him to put forth his 
hand, pluck, and eat. It is true, that in the present false and disorgan- 
ized social state, it is impossible for man to render available all of those 
external sources of enjoyment with which he is endowed; yet he has the 
power of changing this artificial state, and of so arranging things that he 
will be enabled to make a full and harmonious application of all those 
means which God has kindly bestowed upon him. How many of the 
good things of life are granted to man ! The eye is formed for light, and 
light is given; the ear is formed for harmony, and harmony is produced; 
the nostrils for perfumes, and the fragrance of flowers and sweet odors 
is wafted upon the breeze ; the taste delights in flavors, and they are 
spread before us in rich profusion ; the heart is formed for social inter- 
course, and friends and companions are given; the intellect is formed for 
the acquisition of knowledge, and the great Book of Nature is spread 
out before all who are willing and anxious to be informed. 

But alas ! although these pleasures, with some exceptions, are univer- 
sal, and it was designed by our Heavenly Father that all men, without 
restriction, should enjoy them; yet how many individuals are there, 
richly endowed by nature with capacities for enjoyment, — with good 
physical constitutions, fine eyes, exquisitely wrought ears, extremely 
sensitive nasal organs, excellent tastes, broad and living sympathies, 
ardent cravings for knowledge, who are deprived of the opportunities for 
gratifying them ! How many persons confined in prisons, shut out from 
the light of day, and perhaps at the caprice of merciless tyrants ! How 
many, very many, driven either by stern necessity, or the cruel mandates 
of owners or overseers, to monotonous, ill-requited toil, are thereby 
deprived of the means of information, of physical relaxation, of the 
gratification and refinement of the senses, and whose lives are rendered, 
not what the Ceeatoe designed they should be — the sources of uninter- 
rupted and heartfelt enjoyment — but the sources of the most acute and 
torturing pain, the very bitterness of gall and wormwood ! — who in fact 
do not live at all. For what is existence, without enjoyment! A 
perfect blank. An individual cannot consistently be said to live, to 
whom life is a pain, a burthen. For with living is intimately connected 
the idea of enjoyment. He who has no enjoyment does not live. The 
purposes of life, with him, are defeated. He may act as though he had 
life — breathe, walk about, and go through with the usual routine of 



12 

duties, like other people; but it is all mechanical — all force-work — 
nothing spontaneous — just like a horse moving round with a machine ; 
he goes round because he is forced to do so ; he cannot stop himself. 

But, my friends, although the enjoyments we have mentioned, are not 
universally available, we must not blame the Creator for it. He has 
been liberal in his donations. He has acted the part of a kind parent. 
The evil is attributable to man, either to his ignorance, (chiefly to his 
ignorance,) or to his perversity. 

We have now proved, we hope, conclusively, that Happiness is attain- 
able on Earth : first, from the fact that the elements of Happiness are 
within us, and the Creator, in the formation of our desires, in order 
to be consistent with Himself, must have devised some means for their 
gratification; and secondly, because the objects of our solicitude are 
around us, in the beautiful and glorious productions of nature, and we 
are endowed with physical constitutions capable of gratifying our 
various affections. 

We now arrive at the second part of our first grand division, in 
which, if you will remember, we promised to endeavor to show the 
chief reason why man has always been, and is now, prevented from 
realizing Happiness. 

Man's failure to obtain Happiness is to be found, chiefly, in the fact 
of separate, and conflicting action. The moral world is a great battle 
field. Force is arrayed against force. There is, in society, compara- 
tively no union — no concert of action. All of our material interests, 
(i. e. our external, or outward interests, used in contradistinction to our 
internal, or spiritual interests,) are divorced from, and are, in fact, in 
direct opposition to each other. That which is to the interest of one 
person, is detrimental to the interest of another. It is to the interest of 
the carpenter, that houses should burn down, so that he may obtain 
employment by rebuilding them. It is to the interest of the farmer, 
that his neighbors' crops should fail, or their ground prove unproductive, 
so that he may not be prevented, through the effect of competition, from 
realizing a large profit from the products of his industry. He may look 
on with indifference, nay, with positive satisfaction, at the failure of his 
neighbors, for by this means he only the more effectually secures his own 
interest. What cares he if other people do fail ? It is none of his look, 
out. It is their own affair. He will lose nothing by the operation. 
Their interest is not his interest, neither is his interest their interest. 



13 

The lawyer wishes, perhaps against his conscience, that people may enter 
into quarrels, and bring law-suits against each other, so that he may earn 
his "fee. " A peaceable neighborhood would mar all of his calculations. 
He would be obliged, using a trite expression, to " shut up shop. " And 
if he thought of shifting his quarters, the first questions that would 
naturally suggest themselves to his mind would be — " Do people quarrel 
and fight much with each other where I am going to ? Are there many 
murders? Are robberies, arson, and larceny frequent? If so, it will be 
well for me to go ; if not, I had better be contented where I am, and not 
'.' love to roam. " It is to the interest of the undertaker, that people 
should give up the ghost as rapidly as possible, so that he may may 
box them in. It is to the interest of the doctor, that people should 
become sick, and as a Lady, a friend of ours once jocularly remarked, 
''keep them so," as that by attending, and giving them his learned 
and astute advice, he may be enabled to procure for himself and for 
his family, (if he has any,) some of what is generally considered the 
ne 'plus ultra. With regard to this latter personage, a certain poet, in 
an article entled " The Farmer, " has very appropriately remarked, that — 

" The doctor's styled a gentleman ; 

But this I hold but humming, 
For like a tavern waiting man 
To ev'ry call he's coming: 

Now here, now there, 

Must he repair, 
Or starve, sir, by denying: 

Like Death himself, 

Unhappy elf, 
He lives by others' dying. " * 

In fact, my friends, this antagonism extends to all classes and parts of 
society. The infection has spread from the very crown of the head to 
the soles of the feet, of the great social body. Nations war against 
nations — parties against parties — sects against sects — capitalists against 
capitalists — capitalists against laborers — laborers against capitalists — and 
laborers even among themselves. Of how much animosity, selfishness, 
envy, duplicity, over-reaching, fraud, extortion, oppression, and other 
kindred evils, is the present conflict of material interests the fruitful 
source ! The misery and crime resulting from it, ! how frightful. It 
would be impossible, in the space marked out for this first lecture, to 
give anything like a full and correct idea of the manifold evils resulting 

* Let it not be supposed that we are inimical to any individual, or class in society. 
Far from it. We merely condemn a system, which, from its constitution, opposes the 
interest of one individual or class to that of another. 



14 

from the. present imperfect relations of society. What has been shown, 
however, is sufficient to convince any one of common observation, that 
things are most essentially wrong; that antagonism reigns "lord of the 
ascendant ; " that all is a heterogeneous mass of confusion and disorder ; 
that no organizing spirit has moved upon the face of this moral chaos. 
He who denies this, is either blind, or having eyes, will not see. It is 
in vain to extenuate the matter. The facts are so plain, " that the way- 
faring man, though a fool, need not err. " 

Now how, permit us to inquire, is it possible, in the midst of this 
confusion, for man to conquer his destiny — to obtain the great object of 
his heart's desire — Happiness? Is it not the height of absurdity to 
imagine such a thing? Suppose the members of an army, in going forth 
to battle against the enemy, should have a mutiny among themselves, 
would they be in a lit condition, think you, for waging war against the 
common foe? Would not his sudden approach, at that juncture, be 
most unopportune ? Would they not, thus rent by internal dissensions, 
be an easy prey for the enemy ? So with man. He has his destiny to 
conquer. But how can he do it, while he is thus battling against 
himself — while all the members of the social body are dislocated, and 
warring against each other — while there is no organization, no marshal- 
ing of the troops — while each individual is seeking a destiny separate 
from, and antagonistic to, that of his brother? How can man, thus 
divorced and weakened, succeeded in bending circumstances to his will ; 
in arranging things so as to suit his varied tastes and desires? He can- 
not do it. So long as he acts individually, with comparatively no union 
or concert of action, or without any general understanding between the 
separate members of society, each individual pursuing his own course, 
indifferent as to the courses pursued by his neighbors, so long will false 
circumstances reign supreme, and as they have done, and do now, so 
they will continue, to crush their victims under their unhallowed feet. 
Man, individual man, how much soe'er he may desire it, cannot change 
this state of things. Of himself, he is weak. The collective man alone 
can do it. And so long as men are influenced purely by selfish motives, 
regardless of the great Law of Love; ignorant, or inattentive to the 
important fact, that we are all members of the same family, have the 
same common Father, and that there is a certain mysterious link 
uniting all men into one bond, one body, so that a right or a wrong 
action thrills through every nerve and fibre of the whole social system, 



15 

so long will poverty and suffering fill the world, rendering it a "vale 
of tears," blasting our best and fondest hopes, and leaving poor, miser- 
able, wretched, despairing man, "without God, and without Hope 
in the world." 

But only let man unite, organize, and ccme forth in the might and 
majesty of his collective strength, and victory will be his. The giant 
anti-social monster will be cloven to the earth. No more will his 
rapacious sword gleam o'er our devoted heads. No more will be heard 
the sad wailings of fathers, and mothers, and brothers, and sisters, 
and kindred, and friends; but Peace will dwell in all our borders; 
Happiness will spread her broad, floating banners o'er free and rejoicing 
people ; and our smiling Earth, decked like a bride with the beauteous 
garlands of Flora, and adorned with the rare and varied productions 
of Ceres — with rich and luxuriant harvests and abundant fruits — 
will bask in the golden sun-light of Prosperity. 



LECTURE II. 

Ladies and Gentlemen: 

We have assembled at this time for the purpose of exam- 
ining one of the most important, if not the most important subject, 
that can occupy the attention of a rational mind. It is one which 
relates to Man— his nature and his destiny— a subject surely, in com- 
parison with which, all topics of a mere local, or transitory nature, 
dwindle into insignificance, and one Which, from its intrinsic merits, 
and its intimate connection with not only our own interests, but the 
interests also of society in general, claims for itself the calm and 
unbiased consideration of every enlightened patriot, and well-wisher 
of his race. 

As there are some in the audience who did not attend our previous 
lecture, it may neither be unprofitable, nor uninteresting, to take a 
brief review of that lecture, so that they may see the ground over 
which we traveled. It is necessary, also, that we should do so, in 
order to preserve the connection between the different parts of the 
subject. 

In the first place, our subject — "The Destiny of the Human Race 
on Earth, and the Means for its Attainment" — was divided into two 
grand parts, and we promised to treat, first, with regard to the Destiny 
of the Race on Earth, and second, as to the Means for the attainment 
of that Destiny, which Means, as was stated, are to be found in the 
science of Association, or Social Re-Organization, the principles of 
which are professed to have been discovered by Charles Fourier. 

Then, by a brief analysis of some, and synthetic arrangement of all, 
the separate impulses or tendencies of human nature, we endeavored 
to show that the Destiny of the Race, individually and collectively, on 
this planet, is the attainment of Happiness. 



17 

When, having stated some of the various and conflicting opinions 
as to what comprises Happiness, we endeavored to show in what 
actual Happiness does consist — viz: in the equilibrated and harmo- 
nious development, and consequent enjoyment, of all the physical, 
intellectual and moral faculties of man — that in this is to he found 
complete Happiness-Mhat that enjoyment which springs from one, 
or a portion of our impulses, passions, or moving powers, is merely 
partial Happiness, complete Happiness (i. e. perfect in all its parts, 
and varied, of course, in intensity,) being only attainable by the 
gratification of all the faculties of human nature. 

Having thus cleared the preliminaries, the subject was expanded, 
and we endeavored to show, in the first place, that Happiness is 
attainable by the Race on earth — (1st) because the elements of Happi- 
ness are within us, in the impulses of our nature, which when gratified 
are the sources of pleasure, and because the Creatoe, a Being of 
infinite wisdom and goodness, must, in the creation of man's impulses, 
in order to be consistent with Himself, have devised some means for 
their gratification; (2nd) because the objects of man's solicitude are in 
and around him, in his own mysterious and wonderful nature, and in 
the beautiful and glorious productions of the material world, and he is 
endowed with a physical constitution capable of gratifying his various 
affections: and in the second, and last place, we endeavored to .show 
the chief reason, why mankind have always failed, and do now fail, in 
their attempts for the realization of Happiness, which reason, as was 
stated, is found in the fact of separate and conflicting material, or 
worldly interests, and the consequent disorder of the present state, 
not only as it respects the movements of matter, but those also of 
mind — the selfishness, envy, duplicity, over-reaching, fraud, extortion, 
oppression, and other kindred evils existing in the world, being the 
necessary and inevitable results of a false system of society, which, 
having its primary origin in ignorance and selfishness, and acting upon 
the minds of individuals from generation to generation, has produced 
all of those monstrosities which we now behold, and which ever have 
been, and are now, the sources of pungent sorrow and of regret to the 
patriot and philanthropist. 

Having shown that mankind have always been, and are now, 
prevented from realizing Happiness, because their interests ever have 
been, and are now, separate and conflicting, and because, instead of 
3 



18 

acting in a united, harmonious and intelligent manner, they always 
have, and do now, act in an inharmonious, discordant, and ignorant 
manner, we called upon men, in conclusion, universally, to unite, to 
organize, and to make such an arrangement of things in general, and of 
their external relations in particular, that they would be enabled to 
gratify their various tastes and desires, and consequently obtain that 
Happiness which they have so long sighed for, and for which they have 
so long vainly sought, but which, from repeated failures, they have 
concluded, though falsely, is not attainable by the Race in this state of 
existence. 

Now let it not be supposed, for a moment, that because we urge 
men to unite, we have the most distant idea that they would univer- 
sally, and immediately, thus coalesce, even admitting they had the 
power to do so. Mankind, with some noble exceptions, are too deeply 
sunk in the slough of ignorance, selfishness and brutality, for us ever to 
think of elevating them, immediately, to a true and perfect standard. 
Ere this can be done, an entire physical and moral transformation 
must take place in society. Its whole face must be altered, and where 
are now traced only the lines of ugliness and deformity, must reign 
those of harmony and of beauty. But this change can be effected 
only by the refining influence of time, and through the agency of 
science. If we would launch our frail barks into the unknown future, 
we must have a compass, and a rudder, so that we may escape those 
shoals and quicksands which so thickly beset the dark and tempest- 
uous ocean of life, and thus be enabled to guide them safely into the 
haven of Happiness. It is this science — the science of Social Re- 
Organization — upon the threshhold of which we are now about to 
enter, and to which your earnest and undivided attention is especially 
invited. 

Before proceeding further, it is necessary that we should have a 
distinct idea of the definition of the term Science. What does science 
mean? It is derived from the Latin noun, scientia, and means, in a 
general sense, "knowledge — certain, or positive knowledge." In phi- 
losophy, it means, "a collection of the general principles or leading 
truths relating to any subject. " Social Science, therefore,' or the Science 
of Social Re- Organization, in the sense in which we use it, means, 
knowledge pertaining to society; or "a collection of the general prin- 
ciples or leading truths" relating to society, or to the social structure, 



19 

but more particularly, to the re-modeling of the present social system, 
according to principles of Justice and of Truth. There are those who 
contend, that there is a positive Science of Society — which existed in 
the mind of the Creator before he formed the world — the principles of 
which He subsequently embodied in His creations, reserving their discov- 
ery to human intelligence — that this science has been discovered — that it 
can be demonstrated — and that, from its intrinsic merits, and its positive 
character, it deserves to be ranked among, and occupy an elevated 
position in the same plane with, the other positive sciences— such as 
Geometry, Astronomy, Rhetoric, Music, etc. My own opinion is, that 
there is, that there must be, such a science, but as yet its principles have 
not all been completely developed. Only until a comparatively recent 
date has the idea of a Social Science, to any extent worth noticing, 
entered into the human mind, and it could scarcely be expected that it 
has so suddenly and unprecedentedly attained so exalted a position as 
to render it free from all errors or imperfections. Such never has been, 
and we presume never will be, the progress, and natural history, of 
scientific movements. Every thing has to grow, before arriving at 
maturity, taking its first rise from small beginnings. Throughout all 
nature this analogy holds true. From* the smallest, and apparently 
most insignificant insect, or plant, up to man himself, we see this 
principle of growth exemplified. And is human science, which must 
ever keep pace with, but never exceed, the progress of the human 
mind — which must ever run parallel with it — which is, in fact, in 
its developments, but outward manifestations of mind, and of its 
powers — any exception to this general rule? 

But, although the science under consideration has not, in our 
opinion, reached a state of perfection, yet we do contend, that sufficient 
is known respecting it, to enable us to see the way clearly before us 
for a considerable distance at least, and to satisfy the wants of ages to 
come ; and it is only by its presentation, and rigid scrutiny, that we 
may be enabled to correct those errors, if so be any have escaped our 
vigilance, and to make those additions, which can only be developed by 
age and experience. 

It must be evident, to every reflecting mind, that the Creator, in 
the formation of Man, must, in his wisdom and providence, have fore- 
seen some social state, adapted to his nature, in which each individual 
would fall into his appropriate place, and work out his true destiny — in 



20 

which his impulses, passions, or moving-powers, which in the present 
false and disorganized social state are so productive of disorder, crime 
and misery, would, in a true state, and one especially adapted to their 
free play, be productive of order and harmony, like unto well tuned 
instruments, in the hands of skillful, united performers, where each 
separate sound educed by them, performs an essential part in the 
production of musical harmony. He certainly never could have so 
formed the passions that they would be in a perpetual state of conflict. 
He m.ist have so framed them that they would, when rightly developed, 
in a true state, (for, as we intend showing hereafter, they cannot be 
rightly developed in a false medium,) they would be productive of 
harmony. Being harmonious Himself, he could but embody this prin- 
ciple in his creations; universal nature, in its true and unperverted 
state, being as it were but an out-going, an extension, an emanation 
from, the Deity — a reflection of the Divine Mind. 

Behold the innumerable orbs of Heaven ! with what order and uni- 
formity does each particular planet move on in its appropriate sphere — 
running the course it was intended to run — fulfilling the destiny it was 
intended to fulfil — and rendering the whole one vast scene of beauty and 
of grandeur ! And has the same wise, impartial Being who created one 
part of the universe, and subjected it to fixed and uniform laws, formed 
also another portion, and left it merely to the government of chance 2 
Were our destinies intended merely to be the sport of the capricious 
and ever-varying whims of accident ? Must there not be some fixed and 
uniform laws for the government of worldly affairs, that would render 
our destinies certain — that would enable us, to-day, to look forward 
with pleasing anticipations of the coming morrow — that instead of, in 
the language of Homer, enshrouding the future 

" In tempests and a night of clouds, " 
would render all as clear and bright as our own unsullied hopes, making 
happiness and prosperity things not merely to be dreamed of, but 
to be felt, and experienced. Who now, that retires at night with 
buoyant hopes and a clear sky, has any certain guaranty that the 
morrow may not be ushered in with portentous clouds — the grim 
harbingers of coming sorrows and misfortunes? How liable are we, 
every one of us, to disappointments, and reverses of fortune ! The rich 
man knows not, when he lies down at night, but that he may arise as 
poor and disconsolate as those unfortunates whom he has often scorned, 



21 

and perhaps treated with contempt. Who is he that can, with prophetic 
and far-searching glance, penetrate into the sealed womb of Time, and 
unfold the mysterious events therein contained? Who can say that 
his future will be a future of happiness ? In whose heart, at some stage 
of its brief existence, have not care, vexation and anxiety had a resi- 
dence, preying upon, and corroding its very vitals? How many young 
persons, in starting out upon the journey of life, have seen arise in 
their paths accidental and unforeseen circumstances, causing them often 
to take entirely different courses from those which they had previously 
intended, and in the pursuance of which they have either reaped success 
or disappointment ! Here and there, also, we observe certain individ- 
uals, knowing and active ones, ever on the alert, wide awake to take 
advantage of every opportunity that may chance to offer in this world of 
uncertainties, cunningly seize upon them to the no little disparagement 
and envy of their slower and less observant companions, or neighbors, 
and by thus taking this "tide in the affairs of men at its flood," as 
Shakspeare has it, are led on to fortune and to fame ! How many, very 
many persons, gifted with noble powers, for the want of opportunities, 
or of proper encouragement and sympathy, have been prevented from 
developing the native energies of their minds, or which have attained to 
only a stunted growth, while many of their "good-starred" neighbors, 
as they are frequently called, often not half so worthy as themselves, 
have arisen to posts of honor and distinction in the various departments 
of life, not by their own meritorious efforts, but merely by rare combina- 
tions of circumstances, in whose production they had not the slightest 
concurrence, but of which they have taken advantage — having arrived at 
those stations rather by the impellent force of circumstances, than by 
their own inherent powers. We do not deny, however, that there are 
some individuals, (though these, had we time to show, are but exceptions 
to a general rule,) who, despite all impediments, apparently of the most 
adverse character, either of birth, fortune, or otherwise, have succeeded 
in bursting the bonds with which they have been fettered, and in pre- 
senting themselves before the world as men of indomitable energy and 
perseverance, earning for themselves a name and a character that will 
live co-extensive with the annals of time. All we wish to show is 
this — that things, as at present constituted, are made up to a very 
great extent of fortuitous circumstances, upon which no reasonable 
dependence can be placed, and that, instead of moving on with order 



22 

and uniformity, things take random courses, and great geniuses and men 
of talent, instead of "being frequent productions, as they should, and 
would be, in a just and true order, where equal privileges would he 
given to all, are but like those occasional meteors which fly athwart the 
track of heaven, blazing only for a moment, dazzling and bewildering 
the eye of the beholder, and filling the minds of those unaccustomed 
to such novelties, with wonder and astonishment. 

Now we believe there is a social state in which there will be few or 
no accidents, and in which, by observing certain fixed and uniform laws, 
it may be be determined to-day, with reasonable degrees of certainty, 
what will occur to-morrow. 

At present, not only are our outward interests separate and antago- 
nistic, but our minds are also divided, and in a state of opposition one 
towards the other. Men are almost completely estranged from each 
other. There is, as was remarked in our first lecture, comparatively 
no union — no concert of action. There is no general understanding 
between the separate members of society, in order so to arrange matters 
as to conduce to their mutual benefit. All men seek Happiness — their 
impulses impel them towards it. But they rush at it blindly. They are 
not guided by reflection. Standing still, as it were, before advancing, 
and surveying, with calm and meditative eye, the field stretched out 
before them, they do not calculate wisely as to the path that should 
be pursued in reaching the destined goal. Happiness is not made an 
object of study. Men, in the exercise of their reasoning faculties, do 
not seem to perceive, that by the very constitution of the social mechan- 
ism, they are compelled to seek their own individual gratification at 
the expense of their neighbors, and of the public good. And this will 
necessarily be the case so long as human interests are antagonistic. As 
we have shown before, if my interest is opposed to that of my neighbor, 
as it necessarily is by the present social structure, in its pursuance, of 
course I do it at the expense of my neighbor's interest, and of his Hap 
piness. No other alternative is left. And how much soe'er it may 
violate my conscience, still, in order to success in worldly pursuits, 
conscience must, to a greater or less extent, succumb to necessity. 

When we look, for instance, at the business arena, we see the blindness 
and devotion with which men are seeking and doing homage to the God 
of Wealth. There we see depicted, in clear outlines, the conflicts of 
which we have spoken, where each individual who enters the lists, 



23 

becomes an antagonist, rendering the whole, not the concerted action 
of neighbors and brothers, united for the attainment of one common 
end, in the benefits of which all will be sharers, but more like one vast 
combat field of gladiators; or, not so noble — rather like the petty- 
conflicts of dumb brutes, struggling for those necessaries which are 
essential to the preservation of animal life. 

Let it not be supposed, from the sad, and as some may suppose, incor- 
rect portraits drawn by us, that we are ultra in our views— that we 
dwell merely on the dark side of the picture — that we think there are, 
in the midst of this moral gloom, no redeeming lights — that there are 
no goodness and truth in society, or human institutions. This is not 
so. We believe there is much that is good and true in society; but 
this goodness and this truth are so mixed with evil and falseness, that 
it is difficult to separate the gold from the dross. That they may be 
separated, however — that truth can be made to shine in the midst of 
error, we firmly believe; and we hope to show hereafter, that the 
social reform which we advocate, while it wages an uncompromising 
warfare against all things wicked or false in society, recognizes all 
that are good and true, and uses every lawful effort in its power for 
their extension and perpetuity. 

Now, my friends, when men become intelligent — lay their minds 
together so as to form one common mind, thereby rendering themselves 
strong, (for in "unity there is strength,") they will be enabled so to 
arrange things — the various circumstances of life — that each individual 
may gratify all of his legitimate desires, which are so smothered and 
violated in a state of disorder like the present, and one so poorly adapted 
to their proper development. Men will be enabled to make such com- 
binations and arrangements of circumstances and conditions, that they 
may, from such combinations and arrangements, predict, with reasona- 
ble degrees of certainty, what effects will ensue, the same as a chemist 
is enabled to determine, by certain combinations of mineral substances, 
under given conditions, what results will be produced. That this must 
be so, when men become enlightened, appears perfectly rational. At 
present, however, the thought seems not to have entered their minds. 
They now act in an isolated and incoherent manner. Their forces are 
scattered, and wasted, and it is only by their combination and arrange- 
ment, that they can be rendered truly effective. An individual man 
has not the power to make the general arrangement of which we have 



24 

spoken. He may, it is true, to a certain extent, make private arrange- 
ments, by which he hopes to secure his own individual Happiness ; but 
how often do we see his plans and arrangements thwarted, by the plans 
and arrangements of others, between whom there is no mutual agree- 
ment, and whose interests and destinies are in direct opposition to his 
own interest and destiny. Individual man, of himself, is powerless. 
The collective man alone can make that general arrangement by which 
the destinies of all may be secured, and in which all of the separate 
human forces, instead of waging a blind and relentless warfare against 
each other for the accomplishment merely of their own individual aims, 
will, in a united and intelligent manner, work together effectually for 
the advancement of one common end. And when men once act in this 
manner, they will be enabled to develop powers and resources of which 
they now have no adequate conception. Lord Bacon said, that "men 
either think too much of their attainments, or too little of their 
powers, " and we hope to show hereafter, that whereas, mankind gener- 
ally, think they have reached the acme of perfection — that they have 
learned all that is to be learned — know all that is to be known, that as 
yet society is in a state of infancy, knowing comparatively little — that 
there are vast unexplored fields of knowledge in the future, teeming 
with the fair flowers of promise, and inviting us onward and upward, 
higher and higher, into the vast and illimitable plains of intellectual 
light and liberty. 

The distinguishing difference between the present system of society, 
and the one which we advocate, is this, that the present system is a 
wrong and a false system, and the one which we advocate is a good 
and a true system. Now, my friends, is a state, all the elements of 
which are discordant, a right state? Is it a true state? Is not truth 
always harmonious? If so, how can that which is inharmonious, and 
discordant, be true ? And if the present state of conflict and discord is 
a wrong and a false state, must not a state diametrically opposite — a 
state of union and harmony — be a right and a true state? And does 
it not behoove every sincere lover of good and of truth, for the sake of 
these principles alone, independently of any benefits resulting from 
their application, and simply from a perception and recognition of the 
sacred laws of order, to use all of his powers, so far as he can consist- 
ently with his more immediate duties, for the bringing about of a better 
order? Should not this course of action flow legitimately from the 



25 

principles just laid down? If a thing is wrong, are we not morally- 
bound to shun it? — if right, is it not equally our duty to do all in our 
power for its promotion ? 

Nor should we hesitate for a moment, to inquire into the possibility 
of embodying the principles of Goodness and of Truth in society, or in 
human institutions. Gtod, who is the author of these principles, would 
certainly never have formed, nor required their observance, had He not 
devised some means by which they might be thus ingrafted, Such a 
course would, to say the least of it, be very inconsistent. It would 
be requiring of us to accomplish ends, without giving the adequate 
means. All, therefore, we have to do, is, first to inquire whether 
a thing be right, and if so, to pursue it, let the consequences be 
what they may, and to what end soe'er it may lead us. It is true 
there must be some particular means for the accomplishment of certain 
ends, into which it is our highest interest and duty to inquire; but 
does it necessarily follow, that because we are so obtuse as not to be 
able to see the means by which Truth and Justice may be introduced 
into the affairs of men, that consequently there art no such means — 
that these principles, therefore, are mere abstractions of the mind, 
very well to dwell upon in theory, but having no practical appli- 
cation? The least that in modesty can be said, is, that such means 
do, and must exist, but that as yet we have not been able to discover 
them. There are those, however, who not only say that there are 
and must be some such means, in order to carry out the plan of 
the Deity ; but who contend that these means have really been dis- 
covered — that they are in their possession — and who are now using 
all of their influence to make their fellow-men see, acknowledge, and 
use them. 

A practical infidelity, or unbelief, pervades the minds of men almost 
universally, even those of professing Christians. Mankind have com- 
paratively little, or no faith in Providence, or in his universality. 
They see, and acknowledge Him in certain material movements — 
especially in those of the planetary system — these are acknowledged 
to be governed by fixed and uniform laws; but when you even hint 
to them the idea of a Science of Society, by means of which there 
may be the same fixedness and uniformity in the movements of the 
moral world, and call upon them, with all the earnestness and per- 
suasion of which you are capable, to lend their assistance in the 
4 



26 

bringing about of a better state, they show, either by their language, 
or actions, or both combined, that they have no confidence in your 
"theories," as they term them, and instead of bidding their advocates 
God-speed in their noble and generous efforts for the social elevation 
and amelioration of the condition of suffering humanity, denounce 
them as "mad," as "visionary," and do all in their power, if not 
openly, at least by their apathy, or private sneers and contempt, to 
retard the progress of society in its onward march to intelligence and 
happiness, thus evincing by their conduct, whatsoever may be their 
professions, that they virtually deny the universality of Providence? 
and the omnipotent and irresistible power of Truth. To show the 
fallacy of these and other kindred notions, so derogatory to the fatherly 
care and kind supervision of the Deity, and to awaken a spirit of 
genuine trust in Providence, and his universality, will be one among 
a number of special aims in subsequent lectures. 

But let us hasten. In the examination of the social problem, 
the first things which greet our notice, are the Passions, (of which 
frequent mention has been made by us before,) or the primitive and 
legitimate impulses, or tendencies of human nature. These form the 
broad basis, the pillars, so to speak, upon which reposes the lofty 
superstructure of a true social order. To form a correct system of 
society, one which shall be in unison with the principles of Truth 
and of Justice, it is necessary, first, by a profound investigation of 
the nature of man, to become acquainted with his desires, the sources, 
or moving-springs of his being, which prompt him to perform all the 
various actions of life, and then to adjust our social regulations, 
or institutions, in accordance with them. Any other regulations, 
than those especially adapted to man's nature, are both false and 
artificial: false, because they do not accord with the highest term 
in creation, which is Man — " the noblest work of God" — and artificial, 
because, instead of being adapted to his nature, they are arbitrary, 
being the mere inventions of human ingenuity. Society, therefore, 
as it always has existed, and does now exist, is false and artificial ; 
because it never has been, nor is now, to any reasonable extent, 
framed in accordance with man's nature. Instead of being so formed 
as to guaranty the proper development of the Passions, it is so 
constituted, that they are necessarily compressed, or thwarted, in a 
greater or less degree, almost every day of our existence. Moralists 



27 

and philosophers, in all ages of the world, have laid down certain 
plans and regulations for the government of human conduct, not 
deducible from the nature of man, nor in accordance with his desires, 
but having their origin for the most part in their own speculations, 
or fancies, and in many cases being in direct opposition to his nature ; 
and because, forsooth, men, from their constitution, have not always 
been able to form their actions in accordance with such false and 
artificial standards, by which it was impossible even for the authors 
of them to square their conduct, their natures have been proscribed, 
and treated as corrupt; whereas, the truth is, their natures in such 
cases have generally been right, and the social regulations wrong ; 
because, instead of being adapted to that nature, or those natures, 
which God himself had created, they were diametrically opposed to 
them, having their origin chiefly in human ignorance, and weakness. 
This continues to bs the case, to a very great extent. Moralists 
and philosophers still proscribe human nature, in its legitimate courses 
and tendencies, and still issue their bulls and artificial vetoes against 
it. With regard to this matter I certainly cannot be mistaken. In 
giving utterance to these sentiments, I am only stating facts which 
I have observed ever since I have been able seriously to reflect upon 
human institutions, and which are fully corroborated by our every- 
day actions and history. I think I can safely say, that there is 
not more than one in a thousand, if so many, who objects, in theory > 
to this depression of our legitimate desires, or considers it wrong; 
from the simple reason, that upon this subject men's minds have 
heretofore been only partially, if at all enlightened, and because, 
instead of using their own Grod-given powers, and thinking for them- 
selves, they have innocently and unwittingly resigned their faculties 
into the guardianship of others, more capable as they suppose of 
attending to their affairs, whom they have allowed to do their thinking 
for them — thus giving an admirable illustration of that portion of 
Scripture, where " the blind" are represented as " leading the 
blind." 

But, thank Heaven! a new, and a true philosophy, is at length 
beginning to dawn upon the world, dispelling, with its benign in- 
fluence, the daik clouds of error and superstition which for centuries 
have obscured the mental and moral horizon, threatening to envelop 
it in an impenetrable and eternal gloom. The sun of Hope is begin- 



28 

ning to arise, with " healing in his wings," gladdening the heart 
and warming into life and animation the drooping spirits. 

"There never was a sky so dark, but that 

A ray of light did penetrate at last 

The thicken'd gloom. The most dire portents 

Oft are harbingers of happier times, 

And from the black mists of dreary chaos, 

Oft emerge bright forms of beauty." 

Among the many cheering signs of the times, none are more indicative 
of Progress, than the true and elevated conceptions which men are 
beginning to form of the wisdom and goodness of their Creator, and 
of the dignity of human nature. The tims was, (and now is, to a 
considerable extent, but in the same ratio as society increases in 
virtue and intelligence, in the same proportion will such absurd 
notions vanish,) when Gtod was viewed as a cruel, vindictive, re- 
morseless Being, desiring the eternal destruction of his creatures. 
Man was looked upon as a being entirely degraded — in whom there 
"is no good thing" — who could neither think a good thought, nor 
will a good act — incapable of elevation — past redemption — whose day 
of merciful visitation had gone by, never to return. But, how 
changed ! In place of such frigid, unfeeling, repulsive dogmas, more 
genial sentiments are taking possession of, and expanding the human 
heart. Every day, men are becoming more liberal. The scales are 
fast falling from their eyes. God is being recognized by them as a 
universal Father, "good unto all," desiring the unity, elevation and 
happiness of the whole human family. They are also beginning to 
have clear conceptions of their own characters — viewing man, as he 
came from the hands of his Maker, as a pure and a good being, and 
regarding his evil dispositions, not as being inherent in his nature, 
but merely as being the subversive effect of Passions which in them- 
selves are pure and good, but which, not having a social system 
adapted to their proper development, have necessarily, to preserve order 
in a false medium, been repressed, thwarted, and thereby inflamed and 
made to take false courses. We do not deny, however, that these 
perverted dispositions, which for the most part had their primary 
origin in the very social structure, may be, and have been inherited, 
like physical diseases, by children from their parents, until at length 
they have become apparently permanent affections of the mind, which 
it will require ages of good conduct, in a proper order of society, 
entirely to subdue. Phrenology, especially that system developed by 



29 

direct cerebral excitement, shows that there are o rgans of the brain, 
or special convolutions, adapted not only to our primitive and legiti- 
mate tendencies — such as Love, Friendship, Ambition, etc., but also 
to those perverted states of the mind, known as Combativeness, De- 
structiveness, Cruelty, Eevenge, Murder, etc. Now that the Creator 
gave these evil propensities to man when He first formed him, we 
cannot for a moment believe. Such a course of action would not 
accord with the moral attributes of God, especially with that of His 
goodness. The only safe inference is, that they are products of wrong 
conduct pursued by the human race from generation to generation, in an 
order of society whose almost only tendency has been to vitiate and 
corrupt. 

There always has been, and is now, a general impression in the 
popular mind, that individuals should bend their minds and dispositions 
to the peculiar circumstances or situations in life in which they may 
happen to be placed, how repugnant soever these states may be to their 
natural inclinations. Hence have arisen all those systems of philosophy 
which treat of contentment, admonishing us to be satisfied with our 
lots, and which advocate the repression of our desires. Contentment 
under adverse circumstances, has always been described as a virtue, and 
its attainment, something that will render its possessor positively happy. 
INow the true philosophy is, that circumstances should be made the 
servants of man, and not man the slave of circumstances ; for man is, 
or should be rendered, superior to circumstances. But, as has been 
shown before, he has not the power to make such an arrangement of 
things as that they will minister to his wants, so long as he acts in his 
present isolated and incoherent manner. The philosophy, therefore, 
that circumstances should bow to man, and not man to circumstances, 
as is now the case, is, abstractly speaking, a true philosophy, but in its 
application to the present false system of society it is impracticable. 
It can only be rendered feasible in a true state. That which is wrong in 
a false state, (because not partaking of its nature, and therefore not 
adapted to it,) would be right in a true state; and, vice, versa. 

Permit me to illustrate my meaning. Suppose the case of an 
apprentice, bound to a pursuit for which he has an aversion, but 
who has a decided inclination for something else. As a necessary 
consequence, he will despise that pursuit for which he has no taste, 
and desire to engage in that for which he has a taste, and perhaps 



30 

a special talent. But he is pledged, by his honor, and a written 
contract, to learn the particular trade in which he is employed, and 
is therefore deprived of undertaking that which his inclination prompts 
him. Therefore, under these circumstances, it is folly for him to 
torture his mind (at least any more than he can avoid, for we have 
not the power of entirely repressing our wishes,) with desiring that 
which he cannot obtain; but it becomes his duty, so far as he is 
able, to bend his mind and feelings to the pursuit at which he finds 
himself necessarily, though falsely, placed, but from which he has 
no immediate exit, endeavoring, so far as possible, to become recon- 
ciled to his situation, and awaiting, with patience, the time when, 
freed from his present obligations, he will be enabled to make such 
arrangements as will prove more congenial to his feelings. In thus 
acting, he would be influenced by reason, and philosophy — a philosophy 
arising from the necessities of the case, from the peculiar circum- 
stances under which he is placed. But suppose there were an orde r 
of society, as we hope to show hereafter there is, in which the free 
choice of occupations would be given to all, would he not act unwisely, 
would he not, in fact, do wrong, if he repressed his natural taste, and 
forced his mind from its bent by pursuing that for which he had an 
aversion? So you see that, in the first instance, by repressing his 
desire he acted rightly, because, living in a disorganized, and conse- 
quently false state, it became necessary for him to do so ; but in 
the latter case, by pursuing the very same conduct, he would do wrong, 
because no such necessity exists, as in the former instance, he being 
left to follow that natural attraction implanted in him by his 
Creator : thus proving our position, that that which is right in a 
false state, because, partaking of its nature, and therefore adapted to 
it, would be wrong in a true state, and that which is right in a 
true state, would be wrong in a false state. Good and evil cannot 
exist together in harmony. It is said that if bad men were permitted 
to go to heaven, they would not be contented there. " Ye love dark- 
ness rather than light, because your deeds are evil. " 

In order to render our position still clearer, and not to confine our 
remarks to a single incident, we will suppose another case — that of 
a poor man, deprived of certain comforts, or, if you please, luxuries, 
which, seeing others enjoy, he craves for himself, but has not the 
means of procuring them, or is prevented from so doing, by certain 



31 

unequal and unjust laws, interposed as barriers between him and 
those above him, for the purpose of guarding the so-called " rights" 
of the "privileged" class, which, in many cases, are nothing more 
nor less than outrageous monopolies. In order to silence his com- 
plaints, he is gravely assured, by certain moralists and divines, that 
he should not seek for these things — that his desires are wrong. 
Now the truth is, his desires, in themselves, are right ; for a desire for 
the comforts and luxuries of life is implanted by the Creator, in a 
greater or less degree, in the breast of every man ; but he is wrong in 
exercising them, more than he can possibly avoid, seeing he is only 
rendering himself more miserable by desiring those things which he 
cannot obtain, than he is by their absence. But suppose there were 
an order of society, as there most assuredly is, in which he could 
obtain not only the substantials, but also the delicacies of life, would 
he not do wrong, if he endeavored to restrain his natural desire for 
them? 

A state of contentment, or of " equanimity, " as certain philosophers 
term it, in the midst of the poverty, misfortunes and sufferings of 
life, although a more enviable one than a state of disquiet, or repining, 
is not a state of positive happiness. It is only a medium, or middle 
state, in which, experiencing neither positive pleasure nor pain, the 
mind, after abiding the test of numerous disappointments, by repeated 
efforts obtains a forced satisfaction, a kind of stoical indifference, 
which in many cases is more apparent, than real. Such enjoyment 
if it may consistently be so called, can by no means be compared 
with those positive and intense pleasures arising from gratified de- 
sires — pleasures which, as we hope demonstrating hereafter to the 
satisfaction of every unprejudiced, reflecting person, as far exceed, 
in exquisiteness of delight, those meagre enjoyments now experi- 
enced by a few fortunate individuals in society, as it is possible 
for the human mind, with its utmost tension, adequately to conceive — 
mankind generally, in past and present ages, scarcely even dreaming, 
of the possibility of such things ever existing. 

Now let it not be supposed, because we advocate a system by 
means of which our desires may be integrally developed, and gratified, 
that we favor, or lend any countenance whatsoever, to their indis- 
criminate indulgence, in any order, much less in the actual form of 
society. Far from it. In a false medium, restraint becomes a necessary, 



82 027 273 644 3 

and therefore proper, law. It is a wholesome check imposed upon 
passions which, not having suitable channels for their direction, by a 
free out-let, would tend to the destruction of law and order — breaking 
down all bulwarks, and deluging society with an impetuous and un- 
governable torrent of licentiousness, crime, blood-shed and misery. 
By gradual means, only, as, in a true order, we become more and 
more elevated and pure, can those bolts and bars which separate us 
from our attractions, be removed, and we allowed the glorious and 
inestimable privilege of walking in the clear and unerring light of 
Liberty. Until such period, we must be content to bear, in a greater 
or less degree, the penalty imposed upon us for disobedience, awaiting, 
like philosophers, with calm patience and heroic fortitude, the time 
when, our manacles broken, and released from our dark prison-houses, 
we can venture forth, as free men, into the enjoyment of a purer 
and more invigorating atmosphere. 

The subject of the Passions is an important, and also a very 
extensive one, and ample justice cannot be done it in one lecture. 
In our next, we will pursue the subject further, when we will 
speak of the Social Organization proposed by Associationists ; its 
adaptation to the nature of man ; the various means by which it 
may be rendered universal : and in conclusion, will endeavor to answer 
the numerous objections that have been, and are now, offered against 
the science, so far as we are, or may be acquainted with them, and 
treat of things of a more general nature, in their relation to the 
grand subject of Human Happiness. 

For the present, however, we bid you adieu, hoping you will 
calmly and seriously reflect upon all that has been said, and thus 
prepare your minds for a reception of the truths which we hope to 
present in subsequent lectures. 



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